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Sometimes excuses are valid. Life throws everyone curve balls.
Some excuses are creative, providing entertainment at the
self-inflicted cost to the giver’s reputation. Your
consumers, leaders or peers don’t care about your resume, GPA or
where you went to school as much as they care about your actions,
words and thoughts, in that order. Excuses are brand
damagers that will become your brand if you are a repeat
offender.

An excuse tells people where our priorities fall. Here are five
excuses the people around you are tired of hearing.

1. I didn’t get your
message. You can call, text, email and direct message
your contacts. Having so many forms of communication is meant to
make our lives easier, not more confusing. Spend 10 minutes
at the end of the day to check all texts, voice-messages and
emails. If you really didn’t get a message, let the sender know
the best ways and times to contact you in the future.

2. There wasn’t enough
time. This translates to “there were priorities
more important than this one.” If those priorities are valid, be
prepared to share them. If they aren’t valid, be sure to explain
where your time was spent and how there can be a more efficient
course of action in the future.

3. Internet was down. This excuse will become
extinct within 10 years, when everyone possess a smart phone and
every coffee shop, gas station and highway has Wi-Fi. As much as
we rely on this world-changing technology, we cannot blame it for
why we don’t get stuff done. Go to the library while they still
exist.

4. Traffic was
terrible. Traffic is not a valid excuse unless your
car was caused the accident. This excuse is the worst with repeat
offenders. Leave earlier. Make a habit of being 10 minutes
early to every meeting. If you have a “10 minutes early”
reputation, the rare traffic excuse is credible.

5. I had a “rough”
night. You can do whatever you want the night
before a meeting, as long as you are bright-eyed and sharp in the
morning. If your tardiness or constant head-bobbing isn’t a tip
off, then your hangover trifecta of coffee, vitamin water and Red
Bull might be. Not many people will speak this excuse but it can
be evident when your focus level is off.

When results aren’t there take responsibility for your actions by
stating what took priority and what you will do in the future to
ensure success. If you are managing someone who is giving
you more stories than Walt Disney then confront them with
specific facts and have them give you the answer on what they
will do in the future to change the behavior.